Interviews with Vit - Das Schäferhunde Magazine focus on 1st time Competitors at the WUSV 2009.
I would like to Thank Astrid Labuch for her help in getting this out as she did and for all her assistance in Germany !
Please introduce yourself to our readers!
My Name is Vithala ‘Vit’ Singh. I was born in Trinidad and Tobago. I started with German Shepherds from my father who had them for family guardians and personal protection. I am 29 years old and work as a Law Enforcement Trainer in the US and in Trinidad. I am currently writing a Book and producing a DVD on the German Shepherd Dog 110 year later. A compilation of Interviews with persons in the Show, Working, herding Police and Utility world. www.interviewswithvit.blogspot.com
Since when are you involved into schutzhund sport?
I have been involved in Schutzhund training since 2003 and have been one of the persons in Trinidad trying to regularise the sport nationally.
How did you come by doing schutzhund sport?
I have always been interested in the working dog for family guardians and for law enforcement. I thought schutzhund sport was a great hobby to meet the talented trainers and also to assess dogs for the characteristics I find to be breedworthy.
How successful have you been with your dogs, so far?
For me the success we have experienced is in bringing a greater awareness to the local people about the sport in general and what is required to make schutzhund into a recognised national sport. The culture we are learning about competing with the dogs and training toward a specific goal, is the success I have had.
What are the rules for the qualification for the WUSV world championship in your country?
Right now, the rules are the top 5 dogs with the highest qualification. Meaning, for now, we may have 1 or 2 trials per year. So we have many imported dogs that have been successful in the nationals or LGA or provincial competitions in countries like Germany, Belgium and the USA. So we look at the total picture on an individual basis, because we need to encourage more
participation now, rather than put a limit on the number of dogs making a team. Our goal is to have 10 dogs locally that are competing for the top 5 spots. Then we would be more strict in our qualification process, with a minimum score and best average over 3 trials per year and so on.
How old was your dog when you got it and how old is it today? Do you prefer to train a dog from a puppy or an already trained dog? Why?
I have had many dogs over the years. I have purchased adults and raised puppies. I think for most people locally it is easier to have a dog that is already trained. But I am really starting to like working with a young dog and imprinting him and producing the routines in the method I was trained.
Please describe the character, temperament and the drive of your current dog?
I currently have two dogs of my own. The first is my male Axel vom Ajaxturm. He is a hard, temperament full , drivey male. Easy to handle and very quick to respond to direction. I was lucky with him as he was able to work as a security dog and be stable in the family. When I got him, there was no schutzhund locally and it is a pity ‚cause i think he could have done well.
My other most recent dog is Akira vom Foesterhaus, and I will make the Sch 1 & 2 with her in January. She is a really nice sport dog, linebred on Troll v.d. Boesen Nachbarshaft, and actually will have puppies soon from Fanto v.d. Lobdeburg, LGA 09. I like that she is a breeding female that I am working with and titling from scratch and really getting to see her hard character,
while still remaining feminine.
In which environment do you work with your dog? Do you have any help i.e. in a club?
We have a club, the German Shepherd Breed Club of Trinidad and Tobago and we work in a small collective group to help one another. But we also have help from renowned Belgium and German judges and Helpers. I even get a lot of help from my friend and coach Ivan Balabanov from the USA.
Do you breed? If yes, please tell us about your breeding goals. What are you doing to reach them, since you don’t have access to many stud dogs?
Yes, I do breed under vom Wolfstal kennels. I have just started really over the last couple years. I think the best dogs are in the bigger societies like Europe and North America. So I will breed once per year and carry my female to Europe and come back. For me this is enough for now. There is a lot of imported blood locally and for me it is sufficient to breed one or maybe two litters per year. I am writing a book on the German Shepherd Dog 110 years later, and in it I have researched many methods, and compiled interviews with over 35 persons in the breed. I think there will be a return to this type of smaller breeding to keep quality. I want to look at health and temperament as an overall measure. Also, the ability to handle stress and changes in environment and stimuli. There are some strong working bloodlines that I would like to keep present and close to my program. But I want to pay attention to not over using the popular lines and ending up with health issues. I think also in Trinidad, we have a strong national need for protection, civil but controllable animals, maybe more so than in Germany and I am always looking for individuals and bloodlines that can safely produce these traits...
How is the dog sport organized in your country?
it is not. We are working toward this goal. The goal is to have 3-4 National trials every year, to be able to take a local dog from BH to Sch3 in a reasonable time frame and to allow the owners time to understand the intricacies of the sport an training while so doing.
Was it difficult for you to participate at the WUSV world championship? If yes, how did you solve your problems?
It was the first time anyone from the West Indies/ Caribbean was ever there. It was a huge honour and responsibility. But we did not know about all the little details necessary to
compete at this level. It was wonderful, cause we were able to learn this in a fun and inclusive environment. I have many German friends, and also from all around the world, that were understanding of our effort to travel 7000km to just get to the competition. With quarantine restrictions locally, financial constraints and skill development at a basic level, we managed to still pull it off . This year I handled a friend’s dog, as he was very handler strong and I only had 10 days to really prepare. So I think it was quite an achievement. Unfortunately, the dog became ill, the weather for me was a great change for me. But this is high level competition. Basically all problems can be solved with determination, confidence and concentration. A little bit of luck helps too.
